It’s been weeks since I last lampooned TV preacher [tag]Pat Robertson[/tag], so I’m due, right? Reader R.S. alerted me to a fascinating transcript from CBS News Sunday Morning, in which reporter Rita Braver sat down with Robertson to chat about the televangelist’s insights on, well, whatever it is Robertson thinks about. [tag]Robertson[/tag] was in rare […]
Over the weekend, Lt. Gen. Gregory [tag]Newbold[/tag], the military’s former top operations officer, became the third retired [tag]general[/tag] to disparage Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and call for his dismissal. Newbold followed retired Army Major General Paul D. [tag]Eaton[/tag], the military official in charge of training the Iraqi military from 2003 to 2004, and retired Gen. […]
In 2003, then-Attorney General John Ashcroft described concerns over the government snooping into libraries, using the Patriot Act, as paranoid hysteria. “The law enforcement community has no interest in your reading habits,” Ashcroft said. Around the same time, several libraries received secret subpoenas from the federal government for internal records, and insisted they had to […]
The only word that comes to mind is “chutzpah.” Scott McClellan is so mad about the reporting on Bush lying about the mobile “biological laboratories” that he wants news outlets to — get this — apologize. From this morning’s press gaggle: McClellan: And I think it’s reckless reporting for ABC to go this morning and […]
Just yesterday, I complained about narrow wish-lists in which the president’s allies explain how he can get “back on track” by following a series of series of simple steps. TNR’s Ryan Lizza seems to agree that the game plans from the likes of Lowry and Barnes are silly, but has decided to offer one of […]
As noted earlier, the Washington Post reported today that the [tag]mobile[/tag] “[tag]biological laboratories[/tag]” the White House touted as proof of an Iraqi [tag]WMD[/tag] program were bogus. Inspectors knew these trailers had nothing to do with bioweapons, and told administration officials, but [tag]Bush[/tag] and others repeated the claim anyway. Howard Dean spoke to The American Prospect […]
Some of the details on Massachusetts’ [tag]health-care[/tag] reform initiative apparently still need to be ironed out, but the new program that achieves near-universal coverage in the state has a series of political upsides. First, of course, is Gov. Mitt Romney’s (R) victory lap, which instantly makes him the flavor of the month among 2008 aspirants. […]
I know former [tag]FEMA[/tag] Director [tag]Mike Brown[/tag] has been looking for work, but I didn’t expect him to end up in New Orleans. “Former FEMA director [tag]Michael Brown[/tag] might be joining St. Bernard Parish as a paid [tag]consultant[/tag]. Brown, who resigned his FEMA post last September in the wake of stinging criticism of the agency’s […]
The extent of the government’s domestic spying of law-abiding Americans is still unfolding, but surveillance on critics of “Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell” seems particularly odd. The Pentagon confirmed Tuesday that the Defense Department surveilled groups opposed to the military’s “[tag]Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell[/tag]” law banning openly lesbian, gay and bisexual service members, RAW STORY has […]
Today’s installment of campaign-related news items that wouldn’t generate a post of their own, but may be of interest to political observers: * In the closely-watched special election in California’s 50th congressional district, [tag]Francine Busby[/tag] (D) easily came in first with 43.9% of the votes, but will now face former Rep. Brian Bilbray (R) in […]